Discovery Channel

NASA 50th Anniversary Learning from the Moon

Learning From The Moon

Six Apollo missions landed on the moon and returned 850 pounds of rock and soil to Earth. Collected between 1969 and 1972 at different sites near the lunar equator, a total of 2,415 separate pieces ranging in size from a grain of sand to a basketball, were stored at the Lunar Receiving Laboratory (LRL) at JSC.

The last three Apollo missions (15, 16, 17) used a lunar roving vehicle to increase the range of mobility of the astronauts, who returned to Earth with plenty of rock and soil samples.

One of the most famous rock samples, the "genesis rock" returned with Apollo 15 in 1971. Named because it is dated to about 4 billion years old, the rock was found in the lunar highlands, perched up on a mound of dirt, covered in white dust.

To ensure that the rocks samples aren't contaminated, scientists examining them have to wear teflon coated rubber gloves and use aluminium, stainless steel or teflon apparatus.
(NASA)
Six Apollo missions landed on the moon and returned 850 pounds of rock and soil to Earth. Collected between 1969 and 1972 at different sites near the lunar equator, a total of 2,415 separate pieces ranging in size from a grain of sand to a basketball, were stored at the Lunar Receiving Laboratory (LRL) at JSC.

The last three Apollo missions (15, 16, 17) used a lunar roving vehicle to increase the range of mobility of the astronauts, who returned to Earth with plenty of rock and soil samples.

One of the most famous rock samples, the "genesis rock" returned with Apollo 15 in 1971. Named because it is dated to about 4 billion years old, the rock was found in the lunar highlands, perched up on a mound of dirt, covered in white dust.

To ensure that the rock samples aren't contaminated, scientists examining them have to wear teflon coated rubber gloves and use aluminium, stainless steel or teflon apparatus.

NASA archive footage of the Apollo 16 crew giving the Lunar Roving Vehicle a thorough test drive.; DNI; NASA; NASA archive footage of the December 1972 liftoff of Apollo 17 that lit up the Florida sky in the only night launch of the Apollo program.; DNI; NASA; With some samples dated as being around 4 billion years old, rock and soil taken from the moon can help us to learn about the universe that we're such a tiny part of.
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